Did you know that the mango was responsible for a trade deal between the US and India in 2007? Indian mangoes in exchange for Harley-Davidson bikes.
In 2019, Ariana Grande shared a poem by Amir Khusrau about her favourite fruit on X — "He Visits My Town Once A Year, He visits my town once a year. He fills my mouth with kisses and nectar. I spend all my money on him. Who, girl, your man? No, a mango."
Centuries earlier, Megasthenes & Xuanzang, the earliest writer-travellers to ancient India, wrote about how Indian kings, notably the Mauryas, planted mango trees along roadsides and highways as a symbol of prosperity.
In fact, the golden Chausa Aam was introduced to celebrate Sher Shah Suri’s victory over Humayun, while the luscious Dussehri Aam owes its birth to the Rohilla chieftains.
Maratha Peshwa Raghunath planted 10 million mango trees as a sign of Maratha supremacy. Folklore has it that it was a fruit from these trees that eventually turned into the famous Alphonso.
This most-marketed mango is named after Portuguese viceroy Afonso de Albuquerque - it was during Portuguese rule that Goans were taught grafting, creating a range of mango varieties like Mulgoa.
Rabindranath Tagore was extremely fond of mangoes and wrote several poems about the fragrant flowers of mangoes, including the very famous Aamer Monjori.
Legendary Mirza Ghalib was a mango aficionado too; he despised people who didn’t share his love for it. As he wrote, "There are only 2 essential points to mangoes — they should be sweet, & they should be available in plenty."
Mango has left an indelible imprint on fashion too -- there's the manga malai, (mango-shaped pendant), the mankolam motif (in Kanjivaram sarees), the kairi motif (in Benarasi brocade), and even Scotland's paisley pattern.
Fun fact: Mango pickle was coincidentally the most searched recipe on Google India in 2023. The tiny GI-tagged Appemidi mangoes are famed for their distinct aromas.